Enhancing Student Learning and Engagement Using Student Response Systems

Many students live in a constantly changing, fast-paced, technological world that includes instant access to music, videos, images, information, and friends. The hours they spend in school, however, most often do not reflect a similar environment. Rather, they are often subjected to obsolete curriculum content, outdated textbooks and equipment, and antiquated teaching methods. Can the appropriate integration of technology, specifically, Student Response Systems (SRS), in the classroom positively affect learning and engagement? The purpose of this article is two-fold: to describe an action research study designed to assess the impact of the use of SRS upon middle-school students' learning and engagement; and secondly, to suggest that teachers might further enhance student learning and engagement by utilizing classroom technologies such as SRS as a replacement for the paper-pencil pedagogies of the 20th century.